Change of Plans
by BaltaineShadow
Summary: What if being judged by King Yemma in the afterlife would cure all illnesses a person suffered in life? How would this affect Goku and his brother Raditz upon arrival in the afterlife? Very much AU! and for some characters OOC!
1. Chapter 1

So this Story is absolutely AU. The characters won't be like in Canon either. So expect some OOC as well.

I'd be happy about some Feedback and constructive criticism :) Oh! And I do not have a beta-Reader, so there might be some typos and misspelling to be found along the way.

Enjoy :)

Something most people don't know is the fact, that being judged by King Yemma, the regent of the afterlife, will cure all mental illness. Memory loss, insanity, depression, PTSD…

Once someone dies and King Yemma judges them upon their actions in life, the proverbial fog will be lifted.

This happened first to Raditz, then to his younger brother, Goku. Neither of them expected this to happen and both felt awful after reviewing their last actions according to those lost or supressed memories and emotions.

King Yemma knew what had happened to the long haired fighter as soon as his entire snotty, aggressive attitude and all the fight in the young man just died and his eyes became glassy. "No… what have I done? Oh no…!" were his last words before the ground he was standing on literally opened and he was dragged down to hell.

Moments later the guardian of Earth appeared with Goku, mainly to try and get his prize student lessons from a higher master so his time in the afterlife would not be wasted.

"I'll have to judge him first. He cannot pass my desk without being judged. Then King Kai will decide once he reaches his home." King Yemma spoke solemnly. He knew what would happen. He could see it all in his book. The boy – for that's all Goku was in the ancient eyes of King Yemma – had lost his memory. He had originally been send to his now home planet to exterminate all life on the planet so it could be sold. Bringing back his memory and the lost last orders the infant named Kakarot had received before the genocide of the Saiyan race – it might prove disastrous.

"So judge me then, please! I have to become stronger so I can protect my family and friends!" the boy shouted excitedly despite Kami trying to shush him.

"So be it. According to your actions in life and all the good deeds you committed, I grant you entrance to heaven and all it entails. You may now pass." King Yemma never took his eyes off the boy and saw him all but seize up.

The memories may not have been many in numbers, but they were important.

He saw his parents, remembered being in the nursery before being send away, heard his mother cry as if in physical pain while trying to reach him.

He saw his father standing in front of the glass of the nursery, just looking at him while seeming dead on his feet.

He remembered a seemingly tiny Raditz pressing his nose against the very same glass with a huge grin on his face. "I'll always protect you, baby brother!" he told him, with his voice muffled by the glass.

He also remembered the man and the boy his brother had been accompanied by that one time they met: A huge man with a tuft of black hair on his head with a thin beard and an even younger boy with hair like a flame and a bored expression.

The orders came back as well. Exterminate all life on Planet E001548X – Codename "Earth" and report to Planet Frieza 1 afterwards for debriefing.

Goku suddenly felt like he had to throw up. He couldn't move forward and when Kami gently nudged him to get him to move, Goku merely fell over and hit the ground like a sack of potatoes.

"His lost memory has been restored." King Yemma said softly.

"What? The one that came for him said he had had orders to kill everyone on the planet! What about that?" Kami felt faint – he knew that no one on the planet would be able to beat Goku and that no one else would stand a chance against the Saiyans Raditz had promised would come in a years time.

"Those memories have been restored as well. Judgement here cures any form of mental illness, including the loss of memories."

"But… what will happen now?" Kami stared worriedly at Goku, who was holding his head in apparent pain.

"That is up to him." King Yemma spoke with finality.

"Please move your charge out of this room. You may stay in one of the adjourning rooms until he feels better." King Yemma waved his helpers over and ordered them to move Goku away.

Half an hour later Goku slowly and carefully sat up. He felt weird – as if the proportions of his body were all wrong and somehow twisted. He felt too big somehow.

"Goku?" questioned Kami softly.

"Yes…" he answered far more earnestly than anyone could ever associate with Son Goku, who was somehow always happy-go-lucky except during battle. "I feel horrible… I remember my parents and my brother now. What happened to him to make him so… twisted and murderous?" he looked at Kami like a lost little child.

"I don't know, Goku… But I can't imagine growing up as a soldier in a Planet Trade Organisation to be pleasant." Kami swallowed before asking: "What about that mission you were assigned?"

"It's redundant. I won't do it. Earth is my home now."

"I'm glad to hear that…" Kami sighed. He was somewhat surprised by Goku, who somehow seemed … sharper somehow.

"I need to find him. I can't go to see King Kai before talking with my brother, now that I remember him. I need to know _why_."

Kami sighted. "I'll ask King Yemma. I can't promise anything, though." He stood up and left the room with Goku staring out the window at the blanket of yellow clouds which separated hell and heaven from each other. He could see a long, winding bridge over the clouds which seemingly had no end.

"You may enter hell to look for him." Kami said upon entering the room. "If you cannot find a way out of there, you will be stuck there for the entire year. That is something you'll need to remember. We will wish you back, but if you cannot get out of hell anymore, you will not be able to train under King Kai."

Goku nodded and got up. "Where do I go?"

Kami motioned for him to follow.

xxx

Raditz didn't move more than two steps after those trolls let go of him. He just sat down and tried not to cry.

He had sworn to always protect Kakarot. For years and years he had done so by not contacting his baby brother. As long as Frieza didn't know his kid brother had escaped, it was alright.

He could bear the pain of living in that hell hole. Kakarot was safe according to his last check ups and hidden scans of Planet Earth. He wasn't alone, never having carried out his mission. He was alive and well.

He had hoped that his brother was happy. And he intended to never contact him.

For a while his life had been bearable. Nappa and Vegeta were there with him; they carried out the worst of their missions form the skies and only fought the soldiers head on.

Then he met Kenna. The one and only, his moon in the sky, holder of his heart. Kenna was funny, smart and strong. She had dark red hair and eyes in the colour of clear honey. Her race had little fangs and claws like cats.

The moment Frieza knew that they were "breeding" it was over. Raditz had never before realised how much that ice lizard hated Saiyans. Until he returned home with Nappa and Vegeta to find her in their apartment with her throat slit and their infant carved from her womb.

Now he saw it clearly: That was the exact moment he went insane. Loosing a mate was the worst possible thing that could happen to a Saiyan. The mental connection they formed with a female would be severed leaving a bleeding mental wound so horrible that it couldn't be healed. Raditz remembered Nappa and Vegeta trying to get through to him – he and the prince had been friends despite being in different classes ever since he could remember.

It had been of little use. After that moment, Raditz realised with dawning horror, he had been trying to die. He would land on the surface of the planets and would murder the inhabitants without mercy. He hoped some soldier would end him – it never happened.

He started goading Frieza. Blatant disrespect got him beaten and whipped, locked up and starved. But never killed.

Raditz stopped caring about anything, leaving behind a shallow husk of his former self.

Then he went to fetch his baby brother, whom his had sworn to always, always protect, into his living hell.

And that _finally_ got him killed. But at what price? He had taken his brother's live. They both had died.

After that realisation Raditz cried. It had all been for nothing. All the years enduring the horrors of living in a facility of the Planet Trade Organisation and pretending his baby brother had perished with the rest of his species amounted to nothing. He wasn't even reunited with Kenna and their daughter. All he had managed to do in his fit of insanity was land himself in hell and kill the baby brother he had sworn to protect.

Raditz had never felt more helpless and useless than now, after being brought back to his senses.

He figured that most of the Saiyans were down in hell as well. He could set off to search for them, but he couldn't manage to summon the energy to get up and move. He was still sitting right next to his point of entrance into hell, which was a small crack in a huge wall of stone. More souls came steadily out of that crack – they moved past the crying man and soon after seemed to forget where the entrance – and most likely exit as well – had been. Raditz didn't care. He couldn't move a muscle.

He knew this would never end. He'd be in hell forever, without any hope of ever escaping. So he just kept crying for the time being. He had nothing but endless time to contemplate all his sins and failures.


	2. Chapter 2

Goku had been led to a small and seemingly unimportant door next to King Yemma's desk.

"Are you sure about this?" Kami asked again.

"Yes." was Goku's flat reply.

"Very well. Once you go through the door you'll need to go down the stairs. Once you take a few steps away from the exit, you will forget how to find it. You'll have to figure out how to get back after your… talk with Raditz. Good luck." Kami opened the door for him and Goku nodded before stepping over the threshold.

"See you in a year, one way or another." Goku went down the uneven stairs for what felt like an eternity. He saw many souls wander down as well and overtook most of them.

Somehow he couldn't believe that the brother he now somehow remembered again would just turn on him like that. From his earliest memories he knew they'd had a deep bond, as was usual between Saiyans. The bonds between family members had been incredibly strong, even after Frieza degreed that they had to send their infants on planet clearing missions a few days after being born.

Every Saiyan child had this sense of knowing things important to the race, like a collective memory in their genes. They'd always remember their siblings and parents – and the mission. That was the main reason Frieza gave for forcing a race as tight knitted as Saiyans to send away their offspring. The other was the knowledge that the tyrant would just end them if they refused.

Him getting that head injury and forgetting everything might as well have been the last straw for Raditz. Goku, despite not remembering his brother, had felt how injured Raditz' soul was and in how much mental anguish his brother was all the time. He himself hadn't given him a chance at all. He had point blank refused to believe him.

Goku needed to know what happened to the Raditz he remembered. The brother he had met that one time had been bright and full of life and laughter. He had felt safe and soothed by his brother's presence, not instantly on guard. He knew something horrible must have happened. He would have no peace of mind to train without knowing.

When he stepped out of the winding staircase the light beneath those yellow clouds almost blinded him. He stumbled one step and almost crashed to the ground when he basically fell over his _crying_ brother.

"Raditz?" he asked somewhat uncertainly. "Why are you sitting there? I thought I'd have to look everywhere…" he scratched his head. Why was Raditz crying? Goku never knew how to deal with a crying person… they made him very uncomfortable.

Raditz looked up and could only stare in disbelief. "Kakarot?"

"Yes… though I really got used to being called Goku… I … I remember again. Being judged… you know…" he saw Raditz shudder – he knew what it felt like to be judged.

"What are you doing here? I didn't think you'd be send here…" tears were still dripping from Raditz' red eyes. He couldn't believe Kakarot was really standing there. Was this a trick hell was playing on his mind to make him suffer more?

"I wasn't. I was allowed to go train with King Kai – whoever that is. My friends will use the Dragon balls to wish me back to life in a year to help fight your friends." Raditz blinked. The Namekian had said something about those Dragon balls as he lay dying.

"Okay… why are you here then? Is this Kai person down here?" he looked around, half expecting some sort of trainer to stand there waiting.

"No, he's not down here. I came because of you. I remembered how you used to be. About mother and father, too. What happened to you? You wouldn't just go and attack my family and me…"

Raditz cringed. "No… I wouldn't have…" And so he told Goku all that had happened to him to make him go mad. When he was done they were both sitting there in silence for a while.

"This isn't fair." Goku suddenly said and got up. "And I'm not leaving you here. Come on, we'll both go to King Kai." He grabbed Raditz' arm and forcefully pulled him up before turning around and starting to go to the gap in the wall.

"Kakarot… I don't think they'll let me. I've been condemned to hell." Raditz still followed his younger brother, who looked so much like their father it hurt.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there." Goku grabbed his brother's arm once again and pulled up the first few stairs. "We'll stick together, though. I'm not leaving you." He said with finality. Raditz barely suppressed a sniffle. A warm feeling settled in his gut. Maybe things would turn out alright in the end.

Xxx

When the door in the wall opened again hours after Goku went down to hell to search for his condemned brother Kami stopped pacing.

Goku came out first and then dragged a slightly bewildered looking Raditz out after him.

"Goku! What are you doing?" Kami yelled at his grinning student.

"We sorted our differences out. And after everything that happened to Raditz, it would be a shame to just abandon him. So… can he come to King Kai with me?"

King Yemma looked annoyed at being constantly interrupted that day. He glared at the two brothers before drawling "Whatever. Just go away already!" before going back to judging souls.

Raditz looked at anything and everything besides Kami or any person. Kakarot still had an iron grip on his wrist and Raditz didn't fight him at all. It felt nice, somehow – not physically being dragged about, but the care behind the act. It felt like Kakarot would fight before being separated from him again. It was certainly more than he ever expected.

Kami led the two brothers to the start of the Snake Way.

"King Kai's home is at the end of this way. No one quite knows just how long the path is. And no one besides King Kai has ever travelled the whole way."

Kami took great care not to stand to close to Raditz – who was still being dragged by his younger brother like a misbehaving child – and to not make eye contact with the huge man.

"That's a way…" Goku mumbled with a wry grin on his face. "Well. Let's go!" He waved good bye to Kami and started on the snake way. Only when Raditz set foot on it and didn't somehow magically disappear did Goku let go of his older brother's arm.

"I can't believe that they're letting me go as well…" Raditz said after a while. They couldn't see their starting point anymore and were now surrounded by nothing but yellow clouds.

"I guess Kami really wanted me to go there… otherwise you'd still be stuck with me, though."

"I still think you're an idiot. Just so you know, Kakarot." Raditz informed his brother as he ran past him to leave him in his dust. He was more than just glad to have resolved his differences with Kakarot – and that he wasn't insane anymore. He didn't feel like a bomb about to explode anymore and was thinking far more clearly than he had in at least four years.

He vowed to make things right again. He would stop Vegeta and Nappa from attacking his brother. He would absolutely find a way to get them all to work together to bring Frieza down.

Raditz remembered a very vital piece of information once more. Something that he had read by a mere accident. At the time he had skimmed over the info and promptly decided it wasn't relevant anymore. He had stopped caring about things by then…

Not anymore, though – now that information was vital and all important. After Kakarot had come down to hell and had rescued him the last of the cobwebs in his head had cleared away. His biggest regret was somehow turning out to… not be alright, no – they were still dead and it was still all his fault – but it had gotten him in a position to spend a lot of time with just his baby brother. And for said baby brother he would need to find a way to bring his old comrades to his side.

Clearing another planet for Frieza would never happen if he had anything to say about it. He'd need some sort of proof though…

Maybe this King Kai person could help him. The man owned his own planet in the afterlife after all. He probably held some sort of sway over someone…

Perhaps it would be possible for Raditz to talk to someone about his knowledge…

Xxx

Back on Earth Kami had called the rest of the gang to the lookout. Sad as he was about doing so, he even invited Chichi, Goku's wife and mother to his only son. Kami knew she hadn't stopped training. She had the same mind-set as any other of Goku's friends: Never stop, keep improving, and get stronger. The only thing Chichi didn't approve of, was training their child to be the same.

Kami knew that Chichi wished Gohan to be happy and out of any sort of harms way. That included bruises. Or scraped knees. Chichi wanted to keep her child's innocence in tact for as long as humanly possible.

She would protect him, that's why she kept training and even sparring with Goku. Now she'd need to prove that.

Chichi arrived on Goku's cloud, the Flying Nimbus just as the last Z Fighter climbed on top of the lookout. She looked at everyone once, then ignored their presence. Even as Krillin tried talking to her. They had let Goku die and Gohan be abducted by Piccolo. As of now, they were all dead to her – except Bulma, who was not a fighter, so she couldn't have helped. According to Master Roshi Bulma had even tried to keep Gohan safe. She hadn't been successful either time, but Chichi was still immensely grateful that she had tried.

"In roughly one years time two more Saiyans will arrive here. They will be far stronger than Raditz. I called you here to train you to enable you to defend our planet from this threat. If they win, everyone on Planet Earth will be killed." Kami said gravely.

"What about Goku? And where is my son?" Chichi asked through gritted teeth. Her fists were balled up and she stood ramrod straight in front of the elderly God.

"Goku will train in the afterlife – I send him to King Kai. I cannot teach him anymore than I already have… Before the year is up, we will use the Dragon balls and wish him back to life.

"As for Gohan… Piccolo took him. He is insistent on training your son and is using the bond we have to hide them both from me. I cannot tell you where he or young Gohan are. Neither can the Seer Baba, in case you were wondering. I am truly sorry, Chichi."

Chichi took deep, calming breaths. "Training in the afterlife? Wow! Think about how crazy strong Goku will be in a year!" Yamcha cheered wildly – only to be punched in the gut by an enraged Chichi.

"He's _dead_, you bloody, stupid moron! What's there to cheer about, huh? _My husband is dead and my son is missing_!" Chichi screamed in his face and shook him before pushing the grunting man hard to the floor. She glared at all the Z Fighters in turn. "Anyone else who feels like cheering? No? Good. Let's start training then."

"Training? You? I don't think…" Krillin started slowly while waving his hands in a placating manner.

"Right. Stop trying to think before you hurt yourself."

Chichi stared at Kami. Kami nodded and waved them over.

"Mister Popo will start you on some exercises to gauge your knowledge and test your skills. We'll take it from there." He turned around and went inside.

During the first few hours of what would amount to almost a full year of training, it became apparent that Chichi could even best Tien. She hadn't slacked off after all, and with Goku as a sparring and training partner, she had improved greatly.

Just because they waited until their little boy was in bed and sleeping didn't mean that Chichi hadn't done anything in the last few years besides some housework and cooking. She kept to herself and ignored the guys while Popo gave them some advice on what needed to be improved.

"Chichi, I could show you how to fly, if you want to…" Krillin said to her softly. "Just in case Goku didn't already… I mean… he knows how to and still uses Flying Nimbus, so I wouldn't know if you can since you came here on the cloud…"

"I know how to fly, Krillin. Flying Nimbus cannot carry a person this high up. It can float up behind you, like a safety net in case you fall." She told him. This time at least he had thought before he talked.

"Okay." He turned to leave.

"Thank you for the offer, though." Chichi smiled a little. It didn't quite reach her eyes, though. She was still too overcome with worry and grief to be a pleasant companion for now. Chichi wished Gohan was here with her. She silently swore to slowly and painfully kill Piccolo should her baby boy come to any harm while in the Demon King's care.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, dear readers!

I can't believe how much Attention this story is getting in such a short time - thank you all very much for that - especially my reviewers :)

From here on out this story is completely AU - irrevocably, never seen before AU.

For all the Chichi-haters - too bad for you... she's here to stay and I'll make her as badass as she deserved in DBZ. Instead of being a harpy who hates fighting - something I could never understand... she entered the Martial Arts World Tournament and made it to the finals! - she'll be amazing and a warrior princess :)

I'll post early this week since I'm off for a Holiday until the end of the months. The next update is slotted for 05.09.2019!

On with the story then :)

xxx

It had taken the brothers almost two months to reach King Kai's little planet. On the way they had been beset by some sort of Demon Queen and her minions and Goku had nearly managed to fall back into hell. He was only saved from having to start all over by Raditz catching him by the very tips of his hair.

"I thought it would be bigger." Goku mused and tilted his head a little. That gesture always reminded Raditz of their mother.

"Yeah… me too. It's a little… puny." Raditz looked around. "It can't be the wrong place though, right?"

Goku looked around as well. "No. I can't see any other planets. And we really can't have taken a wrong turn anywhere on a basically straight trail."

They looked at each other and then shrugged.

"Let's go then. I really want to meet this King Kai person now… Someone who lives that far away from any sort of civilisation has to be quite the character." They grinned at each other and jumped up to the small planet – only for gravitation to reverse suddenly and drag them down toward the planet's surface quite quickly. They landed roughly and Goku struggled to get to his feet.

"What the heck? I can't get up!" Goku yelled while shakily trying to get both of his feet under his body to try and stand.

Raditz looked at him and sighed. "This is the gravitational level of Planet Vegeta. It's about ten times that of Earth." He lazily looked around the planet.

There was a tree and lots of soft green grass. A few flowers waved in a soft breeze. The climate was absolutely perfect – not too hot and not too cold. The tip of his tail twitched. "Come on now, little brother. Get your lazy ass off the floor – you didn't run all this way to take a nap." He looked down at Goku with an air of absolute superiority.

"Oh shut up, you hairball!" Goku grouched from the ground. He groaned a bit before finally standing up, albeit very shakily. Raditz laughed at his brothers flushed face and the look of deep concentration on his face. He couldn't help himself but to shove Goku back to the ground. He landed on his back and proceeded to look like an angry ladybug trying to roll over but failing miserably. He started hissing profanities at Raditz, who howled with laughter. He could tell that the next few weeks would be great fun for him….

"And who might you two be? You're quite noisy, I might add." Came a voice from behind him. Raditz whirled around.

"Are you King Kai? Kami from Earth send my brother, Kakarot, to you for training – I'm Raditz… I tagged along." He grinned at the small blue guy with sunglasses and a pet monkey next to him.

"Oh? I am indeed King Kai. What's he doing on the floor?" he pointed at the still swearing Goku, who was tearing out tufts of grass to help him roll.

"He's a little daft. He likes to pretend to be a ladybug… and he's never been on a planet with gravitation this high." Raditz told him the first part with a perfectly straight face.

King Kai started to grin, and then he laughed loudly. "Oh my! You're quite the comedian!" he laughed harder when Goku seemed to manage to finally roll with the help of a bigger tuft of grass, only for the ground to give and make him roll back again. "I think I'll actually train you! Come to the house when he finally manages to stand." Laughing loudly King Kai turned around and went away.

"Raditz!" Goku yelled, exasperated. "Help me up already, you stupid ass!"

"Let me think about it… hm…" he went into an exaggerated thinking pose. "How about no?" then Raditz turned around and very calmly followed King Kai. He ignored his baby brother's indignant screaming completely.

It took Goku another ten minutes to just manage to get on his stomach. The high – compared to Planet Earth – gravity was giving him quite some trouble. During their trek to King Kai's small planet Goku had realised a few things about his older brother. They were quite similar in some aspects, like the kind of food and drinks they liked and some general mannerisms like gestures and facial expressions. Something that set them apart was Raditz' mean streak, which was at least a mile long. The man was a prankster at heart and would pounce on any unsuspecting victim the moment their guard was down. For the last one and a half months – Raditz did cut him some slack while they were getting to know each other in the first two weeks – that "unsuspecting victim" had been Goku. Since then he had become somewhat paranoid about turning his back on his brother… otherwise he'd end up being tripped up constantly or suddenly having his pants yanked down while Raditz stood over him laughing hysterically.

"This will be hell… I should have jumped down there instead of up here…" With some more effort Goku managed to get back up again. He was sweating buckets. "Stupid brother. Pushing me back down!" Slowly he started to strip out of his weighted clothing to finally get some relief from the strong gravitation.

Then he finally managed to stomp his way to the other side of the planet to find Raditz and King Kai. And apparently King Kai's pets, a monkey named Bubbles and a cricket named Gregory.

"Look who made it! I'm so proud of you, Kakarot!" Raditz grinned at him like a proud, satisfied cat. "Here! Have a biscuit!" he shoved a biscuit with chocolate chips into Goku's mouth the moment he opened it to protest. "There's a good boy!" Raditz patted Goku's head and completely ignored his brother's borderline murderous facial expression. King Kai laughed again.

"I normally have applicants for training with me try to make me laugh – it gets so boring here, you know… but I don't think we'll have to do that! You two are hilarious!" King Kai wiped tears of amusement from his eyes.

"Great! You hear that, little brother? We get to stay!" Raditz cheered and pushed Goku over again, which landed him once again on his back – without the added weight of his training clothes he managed to get back to his feet again quickly, though, which made Raditz pout disappointedly.

"You were wearing weighted clothing, correct?" King Kai asked Goku

"Yes – I took them off since I couldn't move…"

"Well, I want you to put them back on. And then you can get used to the higher gravity with them on." Goku groaned softly.

"Okay… I don't think I can lift them off the ground, though…" he admitted with a sheepish grin.

"Hmm. Well… maybe we could eat something first and then you can try to catch Bubbles, my pet monkey, without the clothing – and after you manage that with them. We'll see how that goes and take it from there." King Kai decided. He looked at the two Saiyans and realised neither had payed him much attention after he had mentioned food.

Yes, they would have fun in the coming months.

Xxx

Piccolo had watched how the child struggled to stay alive for the first few weeks. Sometimes he'd drop off some fruit for the boy so he wouldn't starve.

Then things changed. The child became much more confident and started to use the sword Piccolo had conjured up for him to fight the wildlife and hunt for food. He learned how to make fire, which plants were edible and which would leave him nauseous and weak due to being mildly poisonous.

Young Gohan could jump higher, run faster and he could defend himself. He made friends with a wild tiger, hunted dinosaurs and had found safe shelter in a cave.

When the boy tried to leave the island, Piccolo intervened.

"I see you survived." He said as a way of greeting. Gohan whirled around, sword already drawn. He could see some fear in the child's face, but still he was calm and somewhat confident.

"I have." Was all the boy said. He never lowered the sword and didn't avoid eye contact.

"Good. Then we can start training." And Piccolo attacked.

Gohan tried to defend himself, but it was futile. Piccolo was bigger, stronger, and faster and was trained. Gohan realised that hell had just began.

Xxx

After Mister Popo reported to Kami, that he couldn't teach Son Chichi anything anymore, Kami himself took over. Mister Popo kept training the young men in the group, while Chichi, who very obviously had trained with Goku for years now, was taught several techniques by Kami. She was strong and quick witted and took to his lessons with a vengeance.

"Come with me. I'll show you to a room in my palace that will let you experience how the Saiyans used to be. After that I will have to tell you something."

Chichi obediently followed him. The room had many clocks on the walls and was bare besides this. No carpet, chairs, tables or cupboards were in the room. Just clocks…

"I will send you basically to Planet Vegeta. The gravitation is 10 times that of Planet Earth, so be prepared, Chichi. You won't die in this room or get seriously injured – the moment you come close to loosing your life or you decide that you have learned enough about our enemy, you will be brought back here. I _think_ this will last a week at the longest. No one has been in the room any longer than a week before. So... good luck." With that Kami activated the room.

Chichi felt like falling into a vortex. The walls all shifted and every imaginable colour swam through the air. The moment this stopped, Chichi all but crashed to the floor. The high gravity made breathing harder than she was used to. She gathered herself and pushed to the feet.

After a few minutes Chichi could walk again. She gathered Ki in her limbs and soldiered on bravely. Soon she came to a few small houses, similar to those of her home world. She had thought that the sun must be setting, for the sky was red, but by now she wasn't so sure anymore. Maybe the sky just was red to begin with…

"Who're you?" a voice growled behind her. She whirled around as fast as she could. The man was huge with black, spiky hair and black eyes. He had a tail too, which was wrapped securely around his hips.

"Chichi. And who're you?" she glared a little at him. She didn't think human interaction would get her far, so she wasn't going to be polite, but confrontational.

"Remon." He came closer to Chichi and stared at her. "Where'd you come from anyway?"

She scoffed. "None of your business." She walked right past him and silently hoped that he didn't realise she wasn't used to the gravitation.

He grabbed her arm. "Not so fast, Chichi." He pulled her back and stared hard at her. "You're no Saiyan. No tail, too soft. What are you and where are you from?"

"Still none of your business." She tried to yank her arm away, but his grip was like a vice. "Let go!" she yelled and tried punching him in the nose. He moved his head to the side and nearly dislocated her arm.

"Fine. I'll take you to someone whose business it is." He quickly adjusted his grip and took off flying with her. She didn't say a word and didn't struggle – this could be interesting…

They flew for several long minutes at the man's top speed before a huge city came into view. Remon took them straight to the huge building in the middle of the city. Chichi thought it might be the palace, but she wasn't completely sure. When they landed he sat Chichi on her feed and quickly grabbed her arm again to pull her along. She looked around in fascination. Everyone wore armour like the one Ramon wore – and like Raditz had worn from how Krillin had described him to look. They were all warriors and most of the people in the yard were exercising or sparring. All of them had black hair and black eyes as well as tails. Those they kept well protected – grabbing the appendage hard had caused Goku great pain before he had trained it somewhat.

Ramon quietly exchanged some words with a guard, who in turn nodded at him and then mentioned for them to go inside. Chichi saw him speak to what seemed no one before she noticed the guard pressing a button on the device on his left ear. She was dragged inside and into a large room. Inside was only one person. He looked at Chichi and then asked her the same question Ramon had asked before: "Who are you and how did you get here?"

"It's polite to introduce oneself before demanding answers from someone else. I'm Chichi. Who're you?" she heard Ramon mutter something definitely not flattering under his breath but ignored him.

The man laughed. "She's got some serious balls. I'm King Vegeta, little bird. And I want to know how you got onto my planet. No spaceship landed here and you are not from around."

"And how do you know that I'm not from around?" she huffed and tugged her arm out of Ramon's grip before crossing them and staring at the King in a bored fashion. Inside she wasn't as sure of herself anymore. Kami had sent her here to see how Saiyans really were. How brutal and strong and how much she'd need to train to maybe stand a chance to survive. Goku wasn't a good example for that… her husband was much too nice and sweet. She felt that it might not be a great idea to antagonise the King, but somehow she just couldn't help herself.

"You're amusing, little bird. I can tell because the gravity of my planet is strongly affecting you. And despite having our colouring and general appearance, you are no Saiyan…" the King wandered around her once and mentioned Ramon to stand aside, which he did.

"Fine. I'm not sure you'll believe me, though.

"I'm Son Chichi, from Planet Earth. I don't know how far from here that is and I didn't come by spaceflight. I was send here by the guardian of my planet to learn to fight. Our planet is about to be invaded and we refuse to go down without a fight. My husband is part of their race and was killed by his own brother. My son was abducted. I want him back and I will stop at nothing to accomplish that.

"So here I am, hoping to learn from a warrior race how to fight without hesitation or mercy."

The King stared at her. "And what is that attacking race called little bird?"

"I haven't a clue. They look like us – no one ever knew Goku wasn't human before his brother came. So… will you help me? Or are all the stories true, and Saiyans are self-absorbed trolls without brains who only live to brawl?" she stared at the King without flinching or blinking. This might not be what Kami had envisioned… he might only have wanted her to see that she needed to improve some more, not to seek aid from the invaders. But Chichi had never been one for doing things by the book and improvising was one of her strong suits.

"You really are ballsy. What will we get out of it, little bird?" Chichi knew he was trying to make her falter or loose her temper with the pet name. She didn't rise to the bait.

"We have some neat technology. I came here without having to travel through space for weeks. I will be recalled home when I wish for it to happen – and if you help me the guardian of the Planet will surely be happy to make deals with the Saiyans. We might not be strong, but we are crafty." She smirked at the man. He hadn't the slightest idea that she was from the future and that there would be no deal whatsoever during his lifetime.

He looked at her, intrigued. King Vegeta could tell that she wasn't telling the complete truth, but she was staying quite close to it. He'd have to get some information about her planet, but until then he would allow her to stay and train.

"Fine… you can stay. Seeing as how much you still struggle despite not trying to show it, I think it best if you start to train with the third class soldiers. Ramon will escort you to an appropriate group. He waved them away and then left the room to go see the planet's oracle. He didn't need to go overly far, seeing as he had mated the female and she was expecting their second child any day now. After he had told her about the strange encounter, the Queen poured some clear water in a large bowl and stirred it with her hands.

"Show me what happened to Son Chichi's mate and young." She told the water and soon colours started to swirl in the water. They both stared at the two young Saiyan males as the ended each other and witnessed the older brother tell the Earthlings that his comrades, their as of yet young son and General Nappa, would come in a years time to slaughter them all before he died. The royal couple saw the Namekian take the half-Saiyan child away. They looked at each other in confusion. Then the Queen asked the water a question of utmost importance:

"What happened to our race in Chichi's timeline?" and then they saw Frieza, their ally, destroy their planet while laughing manically.

"Will this happen to us too? Why?" the water showed them Frieza's growing fear of their race. Because they completed any mission he threw their way and because they kept improving and growing stronger Frieza of the Planet Trade Organisation would murder them all. Four of them that they now knew escaped the utter devastation. Four. All male. A race doomed.

"We need to stop this from happening." He said quietly. She nodded. They'd cut all ties with the Organisation.

"We need to play our cards right. We need to slowly decrease how many warriors go on missions and find new, strong allies. And we should have another chat with this Chichi sometime…"

Meanwhile Chichi had been dropped off at the house of someone called Gine. She seemed nice enough and Chichi offered to help her cook for her family. She told Chichi that her son was still in school and that her mate – Chichi figured that that was the Saiyan term for 'husband' – was on the planet as well for now. Her mate was out training with his team, of which he was the captain, and he would pick their boy up on the way home. They regularly fed the whole team dinner, for which they all pitched in.

Gine wasn't much of a fighter and had quit the corps after her first off-planet mission with her mate as her captain.

"I kept the captain, though. He was just too yummy to let go!" Gine grinned like a cat that had gotten the canary. Chichi snorted.

"That's how I met my husband. I liked him, so I decided to keep him. Best decision of my life." She smiled. "What are their names? My husband's name… was Goku. Our boy's name is Gohan."

Gine frowned at the past tense. Ramon had mentioned something about training with them because of an invasion and because of vengeance for her mate… Gine couldn't imagine life without Bardock.

"My mate's name is Bardock. Our boy is Raditz."

At this Chichi flinched a little. Raditz… like her brother in law? What were the chances of that happening? She had her answer when the door opened and a mirror image of her Goku walked in with a little boy with hair so long it reached down to the ground. She nearly fainted. She couldn't even blink while Gine told her mate, her very own father-in-law, their son and their friends what had happened and who Chichi was. Bright spots started to dance in front of her eyes and she could feel tears well up.

"Are you okay?" a tiny voice said right in front of her. Raditz. The reason for Goku's death. His brother. He was tiny and adorably, with huge black eyes and babyish round cheeks and his arms and legs still slightly chubby.

Chichi hadn't cried since she had heard the news of Goku dying to protect their son and their planet. Now the floodgates opened and she couldn't stop. The adorable, innocent little Raditz gave her a hug and then ran to hide behind his father. Gine started to pat her back a little and Chichi felt a little better. No matter how this had happened and how many coincidences in a row this had been, Chichi would make the most of it. She was with family and she would tell them the truth.

"I think we need to talk." She finally managed to get out. "There are things about my coming here you don't know. I haven't told anyone, but I must tell you." She tried to hold back more tears but they just kept falling.

"What do you mean? Does anything you kept from the King endanger our family?" Gine asked while wringing her hands. Bardock picked his son up and stared hard at Chichi. He looked so much like his son that Chichi couldn't bare it. More tears blurred her vision.

"Yes and no. I'm not sure how this mode of travel works, but I'm sure that it sent me back in time. I had no intention of sharing that with anyone. And I don't think Raditz should hear the story. It's upsetting…" one of Bardock's teammates tapped the man on the shoulder and took the now protesting child and left after making his comrades promise to fill him in. Chichi took several deep breaths before she could continue.

"Until a few months back my husband and I were sure we were both human. We knew his grandfather had found him in the forest near his home, but nothing of how Goku came to be there. The day his brother came to the planet we found out what happened.

"I don't think you'll quiet believe me… but that brother was Raditz. And you" she pointed at the stunned Bardock, "look exactly like my husband. If it weren't for the scars, that is… But just looking at you hurts me." Chichi wiped the tears away again, but they kept coming. She hadn't felt the loss of Goku this acutely before she had seen Bardock's face.

"That grown Raditz wasn't anything like that adorable little boy I just met. From what our friend Krillin told me he was insane. He told them that the home planet of the Saiyan's had been destroyed, but not how or when exactly. There had been four survivors, your boys included."

Chichi closed her eyes. Ramon hadn't told Gine how Goku had died, she was sure of that. She had just heard him say that Chichi's husband had been killed by the invaders. "They killed each other." She said quietly. "Goku wouldn't believe him and refused to go with him. So Raditz took our son, Gohan, as a hostage to force Goku along. They fought. And neither survived. Now two more Saiyans will come to Earth to try and wipe us all out. And I can't have Gohan die as well. I just can't."

She became acutely aware of all of them staring at her open mouthed. "You're kidding, right?" the other female in the room asked. "This can't be…" Chichi had one thing on her to remind herself of her reason to fight. She was glad the King hadn't had her searched before she was brought before him, for it was kind of obvious what race made up half of Gohan's DNA. She pulled out a slightly crumpled photograph of her family. Her, Goku and their boy.

She handed the picture to Gine who just stared at it before Bardock took it from her limp hand. "Bloody hell." The other woman hovered in the air to take a peak as well.

"I'll be damned. That bugger looks really just like you!"

"We have to find out how this all happened… and what happened to Raditz? He's not mad. He's charming and sweet… what you told us does not really fit with what you'd expect from someone who's been bugging his parents for a sibling…" Borgos, the huge, bulky guy without hair on the top of his head muttered.

"No… it doesn't. Now that I've seen him as a child, even if it was just for a moment, I think that something horrible must have happened to him. Something worse than losing his family and home." Chichi had finally calmed down but she was still shaking a little. "Who knows? Maybe Kami sending me here to see how Saiyans fight might help you change something."

"Do you know when it will all happen?" Bardock asked while still holding the picture of Chichi, Goku and little Gohan.

"From what Kami, our planet's guardian, pieced together, it happened shortly after Goku was sent to Earth." Chichi frowned. She wasn't sure how many years there were between the brothers and when in the timeline Kami had sent her.

"What kinda name is Goku anyways?" Bardock's female teammate asked with a snort. "Sounds like a disease."

"Grandpa Gohan named him that." Chichi said defensively. "It's a great name!"

"None I'd choose for my kid, though." Gine chimed in and the shrugged a little helplessly at Chichi's glare. "I'm sure it wasn't the name we picked. Can't fault his finder, though… Finders keepers and all that."

"So we'll have time to try and change the course of history until Raditz gets his wish and he gets his sibling. Great." Shugesh said.

"I think we'll start training in earnest tomorrow." Bardock told his team. "We need to be prepared." He looked at Chichi. "I guess you'll tag along then…"

"I guess I will." She nodded resolutely while trying to not start crying again the moment she looked at her father-in-law.

"Well…" Gine started and then went to put food on the table. "I won't train with you."

"Gine… you should at least be able to defend yourself better than you can now… just because you don't like it doesn't mean it won't be necessary." Bardock frowned at his mate. Didn't she get how bad the situation really was?

"I know. It's more along the lines of 'shouldn't', really." She didn't look at anyone and kept herself busy by grabbing glasses and water to drink.

"Shouldn't? With what we're facing I think you should!" Borgos told her.

"Fine. Can't then. Doctor's orders." She went to look out the window. "Where did Tora take Raditz anyway? He should be back by now." Everyone was staring at her.

"And why did the doctor tell you to stop training?" Bardock asked from where he still stood as if rooted to the ground while still clutching the picture Chichi had given them. "Gine?"

She looked at him and just said "We don't have much time to prepare for the destruction or the planet. So you guys better do your best."

Chichi blinked and then got what Gine was trying to tell her mate and their friends. "Goku…" she murmured. Gine smiled softly.


	4. Chapter 4

Kami looked at the door of the Pendulum Room with worry. He had send Chichi in a few hours ago, fully expecting her to be back by now. The room was similar to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber in the aspect that time ran differently in there. Chichi had spent close to four months on Planet Vegeta now.

The only thing he was sure of was that she was mostly unhurt. Serious danger to her life would have meant that she was brought back straight away. Kami couldn't understand what kept her there. She was meant to see how Saiyan's fought, how merciless they were. Nothing more, though.

And still she was there. She must have found them in her time on the Planet. Something must have gone wrong.

"I think I'll have to consult with Baba. She will be able to see Chichi even in the Pendulum Room…" he murmured softly.

Kami quickly went to the Teleporter Machine that was kept in the lookout and used it to quickly arrive at Baba's mansion. He was let in without a hassle and promptly shown in the room Baba was sitting.

"To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure? Not even my Cristal Ball could warn me in time." The ancient seer asked Kami with a sparkle in her eyes.

"I send Son Chichi into the Pendulum room hours ago and she hasn't returned. You know how those rooms work, I gather?" Kami told her quickly. Baba could see he was upset and worried for the young woman.

"I do know how they work, yes." She agreed. "You want me to find out what happened to her."

"Yes. Please take a look for me." Kami agreed and leaned closer in anticipation.

Baba turned to her Cristal Ball and activated it quickly. She liked the Son couple greatly and would do quite a lot to help them. She was still miffed that she couldn't find Piccolo and young Gohan – whatever Piccolo did to hide them interfered with her abilities.

"Chichi is still on Planet Vegeta. She found the Saiyans – and somehow convinced them to help her train. That girl is something special indeed!"

Kami stared at her with wide eyes. "She's training with them? Unbelievable!"

"Yes – she has more luck than I can imagine someone having. Kami, she literally found her in laws" Baba crowed and laughed hysterically. Something that had a probability so low it was inconceivable and Chichi did it. "She is staying with her parents-in-law and tiny little Raditz." She showed Kami the images of Chichi helping Gine with the cooking, of Chichi playing hide and seek with the chubby little toddler that would become the fearsome warrior they had met and of Chichi training with Bardock's team.

"She's having quite the time there. I can't believe it…!" Kami was speechless. "How is that even possible?"

"I don't know. Her being send to Bardock and Gine was pure coincidence. She convinced the King that there would be a possible pact between Planet Vegeta and Planet Earth if they helped her train. She is in spirit very similar to them and found the correct triggers to get their help."

As they were talking the Cristal Ball suddenly flashed and the face of the Queen appeared.

"Hello. I'm Maris, Queen of all Saiyans and the Seer of my planet. It would appear we have one of yours on our planet – and in our time. I took the liberty to look into the young woman's story and I think we could help each other." She smiled at Kami and Baba, who stared at here with huge eyes.

"Ah… yes… I… I am the Guardian of Planet Earth. We face a threat from the last of your kind. I, well… I wanted Chichi to experience how Saiyans fight, to prepare her for what I believe to be inevitable." Kami looked at the Queen sadly.

"Yes. I know. And I also know what happened to our planet in you time. We are looking to change that outcome. As far as we've seen now, one of the leaders of the organisation that promised to protect us and help us advance our technologies will destroy our planet because he fears our strength. Thereafter he will hurt and abuse the survivors and treat them like trained pets. I cannot allow that to happen." She seemed angry.

"I… see." Kami was shocked. "What kind of a being would do something like that? That's…"

"Frieza. An Icejin. They are lizard-like creatures of incredible strength and endurance." She shook her head. "We did everything he asked in return for his generosity and protection. He made us conquer worlds and kill their inhabitants. He took our new born children and had us send them to planets with weak inhabitants, programmed them with orders to kill as soon as their bodies could handle the strain.

"We usually form tight bonds with our children and this separation destroys those bonds."

Kami didn't know what to say. They had gotten incredibly lucky when Grandpa Gohan had dropped Goku on his head. Even as a young child Goku was one of the absolutely strongest beings on the planet… he would have succeeded in exterminating them.

"How can we help you?" Baba asked when no sound left Kami. "We are not in the same time and none of our warriors is strong enough to help you. We face extinction from the two Saiyans that are on the way right now."

"You already did. Had Chichi not come we would have been clueless. We have a plan to defeat Frieza and his Lieutenants by now… not in a way we'd prefer, but I managed to convince my mate that it was for the best." She sighed. "I contacted you to give you a way to prevent a fight you cannot win. I know who survived. One of them is my oldest son, Vegeta. The other our General, Nappa. I will tell you about them, and I will give you information that you cannot know to convince them to stop attacking." She smiled sadly. "All of the ones who lived and went on to serve on Frieza's base are mentally scarred and it made them twisted and cruel. Maybe you can help them get better."

"We will try, Queen Maris." Kami promised sadly. He could tell from the Queen's words that she had seen the cruelties done to her child.

"Thank you… another thing. I looked on into the brothers Raditz and Kakarot. They do get along quite well by now and have improved in great strides. They are stronger than Nappa and together could take on my son by now. Please wish both of them back to life with those Dragon Balls…" she smiled. "Vegeta would probably be glad to have his friend back." Then she frowned a little. "And do remember to wish them back several days before your guests are to arrive – it will take them time to get back to the place where you can fetch them from."

The call from another time ended as suddenly as it had begun and Kami just stared at Baba.

"What just happened?" he asked in utter confusion.

"I don't know, Kami. But we better remember to wish those boys back to life several days before those two Saiyans are set to arrive. Both of them." Baba said and started to search for the locations of the Dragon Balls. "We better collect the Dragon Balls straight away."

"Yes. I'll send my new students out to go and look for them. Taking a break from training for a little adventure might just be what they need…" Kami reactivated his Teleporter Machine to return to the Lookout.

He went straight out to the training warriors.

"I have a mission for you all to complete." He began while looking at them all in turn. Yamcha, Krillin, Tien and Chiaotzu looked at him with determination. Yajirobe looked ready to faint – or ready to run away, depending on who was asked. "I need you to collect the Dragon Balls. It will be useful to have them already on hand when we need to wish Goku back to life." He decided to not yet tell them about Raditz… Krillin especially might try to revolt the moment he heard. And now that he knew that the boys would need at least a day to return to King Yemma's office he decided to only tell them once the wish was made.

"Sure – let's go to Bulma and get the radar!" Krillin said full of energy. He couldn't wait to see Goku again. It had already been half a year since his best friend had died and had gone on to train hard in the afterlife. For Krillin that half year had been horrible – not seeing Goku for years on end but knowing his friend was doing well hadn't been hard. They'd both trained on their own and knew they'd see each other again.

But knowing he was dead? No. Krillin could hardly stand the thought. He was beyond mad at Raditz for doing this to his own brother.

Krillin found solace in the thought that they'd wish Goku back to life and that Raditz could rot in hell for what he'd done. Chichi was taking things badly too. He knew she was crying when she thought they wouldn't notice or hear. Not knowing where Gohan was or how he was doing must be torture. Knowing Goku had died trying to protect their child only for the boy to be stolen away by Piccolo, who they all knew hated Goku with a vengeance must be breaking Chichi's heart.

"Is Chichi coming along as well?" Tien asked Kami. They all looked around but couldn't see her anywhere.

"No." Kami said. "Chichi is currently undergoing special training. You all will have to complete this training as well, but at another time and together." He told them while willing them silently to not ask further questions.

"Why is she doing it alone then?" Yajirobe asked in his usual tone, a mix between bored and annoyed.

"Because she is more advanced than us, dumbass!" Yamcha growled at the short, rotund man. "Goku trained with her and he improved a lot in the last five years. So it's only natural for Chichi to have overtaken us all."

"Whatever." Yajirobe rolled his eyes and laid down on the ground.

"What are you doing now, you lazy bum?" Tien yelled at the man.

"What's it look like, Triclops? I'll nap while you lot go and find those baubles!" he turned around and proceeded to ignore them all.

"Great." Yamcha growled. "Let's go, guys. We're burning daylight!" and off they went, while Yajirobe started snoring in the sun.

Kami sighed and went back to the door of the Pendulum Room to wait for Chichi to return.

Xxx

Meanwhile Goku and Raditz had been training hard as well. Goku was now completely used to the higher gravitation and was back to wearing his weighted clothing. Raditz had basically decided to go on a holiday of sorts and waited for his little brother to catch up to his level – he told King Kai that it was boring to always just be able to beat his brother down without any effort.

Now they were almost even – Raditz would have to put some effort into his fighting now. He, too, had donned some weighted clothing now and he knew it would help him improve quickly and greatly. He wore his Saiyan armour over the weighted top and the new boots looked almost identical to his old ones.

"Come on then, baby brother. Let's do some damage!" he grinned and started his attack before Goku had the chance to really settle into his stance. As it was Raditz managed to sock him in the face pretty good and followed his attack with a nice, smooth kick to the kidney. Goku yelled and went sailing.

Before he could get his bearings Raditz was on him again.

This game went on for a while before King Kai ordered them to stop.

"Goku, tell me why you lost this badly despite you two being almost even in strength now." He ordered.

"He fights even dirtier now than before." Goku ground out and made a pouting face. "And I didn't react quickly enough." He admitted with a sour look on his face. Goku hated loosing.

"That's how you must expect Vegeta and Nappa to fight, sunshine. They won't wait until you're quite ready, you know?" Raditz told him with a Cheshire cat's grin on his face. He quite enjoyed messing with his little brother. This was how it should have been between them growing up – if _the thing_ hadn't been. "King Kai… I just remembered something I'd need to talk to you about… It might end up helping us resolve matters with my comrades, if I can still call them that…"

"How?" Goku demanded to know.

"I'll tell you after confirming something. I promise." Raditz told him quietly. Goku frowned but nodded.

"Fine. After training you can check on your idea." He said before promptly tackling Raditz to the ground before his older brother could even think about putting up a defence.

They trained for several hours, with Goku throwing his careful training and adherence to the rules of fighting out of the proverbial window. After they were both tired and sweaty King Kai ended the training day and told the brothers to go wash up before dinner. Goku all but sprinted to the bath and barricaded the door before Raditz could rush in after him.

"Let me in, your wretch!" he hollered and banged on the door.

"Wait your turn, furball!" Goku hollered back.

"I'll get you good for this, I swear!" Raditz kicked the door and it creaked dangerously. Goku laughed wildly.

Raditz made his way to King Kai. He figured that this might be the best time to ask for advice without his brother trying to listen in.

"Can we talk now? While the doofus is washing up?" he asked and watched as their trainer and his pets cooked dinner – him and Kakarot would have to do the washing up and cleaning of the house later.

"Of course. Sit down and tell me what is bothering you… we'll see if I can help you out." King Kai glanced at him before continuing to stir the food. "I hope you won't mind that I keep cooking."

"That's fine. I'm not sure where to start." Raditz admitted and scratched his head.

"Try at the beginning." King Kai advised quietly.

"It was a few months after we had been told that our home world had been destroyed. I had been wandering the hallways after hours, even though we, that is Vegeta and I, had been told to stay in our quarters then. I had been bored, that much I remember again. I had forgotten so much, especially after Kenna…" he took a deep breath. "Anyway. I heard someone coming down the hallway and I knew I'd be in trouble if I was found. So I opened the first door I came by and locked myself inside." He sighed again.

"It was one of the computer terminals we had no clearance to enter. I knew if I was found now I'd be in really deep shit. Frieza didn't use kiddie gloves on the Prince and me, even though neither of us was older than eight years old. He nearly killed me when I refused to believe the lizard that Planet Vegeta and my family were gone – he accused me of disrespect and insubordination and beat me until I stopped moving." He paused shortly before continuing. "I knew I couldn't leave the room right then, so I sat down and committed an even greater crime than being out and about after the hours that had been set for us."

"And what was that, Raditz?" King Kai asked quietly and without any judgement. He felt this would be some very important information. They also had some time, seeing as Goku liked to soak after a hard workout – and Raditz had pulled out all the stops today.

"I accessed the terminal. It was password protected, but for me it was ridiculously easy to break through. I had decided to read through some mission reports of my father's, just to have something of him. I missed them terribly back then. So I searched for my planet." He stopped again and when King Kai looked at him he had a faraway look on his face.

"What did you find, Raditz?" he asked.

"A report, but not from one of ours. Dodoria reported having murdered my father's team on Planet Meat. He reported a mission completed with only a minor hitch, as my father had defeated several of Dodoria's troops before Dodoria apparently finished him off as well." He paused briefly and clenched his fists. "Frieza had ordered this."

King Kai turned around and stared at the young man. "I have a feeling I know where you are going with this. I never imagined Frieza to be this… I can't find an appropriate term for how disgusting and horrible he is." King Kai shook his head. "Do you know why the order was given?"

"Yes… my father and his troop of low-class Saiyans had managed to complete a mission several of Frieza's higher class teams had failed. They had invaded and conquered Planet Kanassa. A troop of five low class Saiyans had managed to do what several of Frieza's best teams couldn't… and instead of awarding them for their efforts, he grew fearful. So he decided to exterminate the entire race." Raditz shook his head. "The report included a transcript of what was said. Those were Dodoria's exact words. Another report by Zarbon, Frieza's right hand man, specified the trip they took to my planet. Dodoria hadn't even managed to kill my father and he beat them there. I can only guess that no one on the planet believed his story of Frieza betraying them, because he was the only one who stood against Frieza. We all know how that ended."

King Kai was speechless. Raditz continued quietly. "I found out the same night, that Kakarot had been sent to Planet Earth mere minutes before father arrived back on the planet, heavily wounded and apparently half crazed. So I knew my brother had survived. Later I told Vegeta and Nappa that mother had sent me a message when he had been deployed. I never told anyone – I knew we couldn't hope to beat the lizard. It would have been absolutely useless to even try. Now though… now it might help Kakarot and me to convince Vegeta and Nappa to work with us. To stay low until we're all strong enough to beat Frieza and his family. But I need proof. Vegeta won't believe me just because I tell him this story. Nappa will just laugh it off.

"I know Vegeta hates Frieza as much as I do, but he will for now stay loyal until I can prove my story without leaving any doubt in their minds." He ended his tale there.

"And you want to know how to prove this from here. Or once you see them again." King Kai guessed.

"Yes. I believe that would be good…" Raditz agreed. "Although I'm not sure how it would be possible to obtain that proof and keep it when Kakarot and I are wished back to life." He shook his head. "This whole situation is insane. There are only four of us left – at the moment two and a half-Saiyan. We shouldn't fight to kill each other…"

King Kai agreed. "I'll think about your problem… and I might confer with the Guardian of Planet Earth… maybe they can do something from the living side." Raditz nodded his consent.

"I hope we'll find a way." He said just as the door opened and Goku walked in.

"What way?" he asked and looked at both King Kai and his brother in turn. "You wanted to tell me something earlier, right? Is this about that problem?" he asked Raditz, who nodded.

"Yes. Let me shower first and I'll fill you in over dinner. Maybe you'll have some idea that could help." Raditz got up and ignored his frowning brother in favour of bathing.

Goku tried hiding a grin as Raditz disappeared into the bathroom. King Kai saw it though and shook his head. "You used up all the hot water, didn't you, Goku?" he asked in a stern voice.

"Maybe." Goku said and grinned at the blue skinned man. Almost as soon as he uttered the word they could hear yelling out of the bathroom.

"Kakarot! You ass! I'll get you for this!" Raditz' voice boomed through the door.

"You can try, you big smelly carpet!" Goku shouted back with a laugh in his voice. King Kai snickered behind him. Those two were very amusing!

During dinner Raditz kept glaring at Goku while making snide comments every time his younger brother said something.

"You gonna tell me about this problem now? Or do you need more incentive?" Goku finally asked and stared at his sulking brother. Raditz huffed a few times, then told Goku about Frieza and what he did. Goku didn't say anything at first. Ever since he could remember his parents and their friends again, he wished he could have had more time with them – or that they could meet Chichi and Gohan at least. And he hoped they were proud, even though he had lost his memory and never completed his mission.

To know now that it had been their supposed partner and employer, Frieza, who had murdered them all out of a silly fear – it made Goku mad with rage. He had never felt such anger in all his life before, not even when King Piccolo's servant had killed Krillin. He gritted his teeth and unconsciously powered up. The house started to shake from the force and King Kai, his pets and Raditz tried to put some distance between themselves and Goku.

"Kakarot! Calm down!" shouted Raditz, who was starting to worry by now. Goku didn't hear him – and suddenly his hair had turned blond and his eyes teal and Raditz could only stare at his brother in wonder. "Impossible…" he muttered. He couldn't stop staring at his little brother. "I thought it was just a story."

"What is this?" yelled King Kai in slight fear. He had never felt a power level this outrageously high before. Bubbles and Gregory were hiding behind Raditz and were clearly afraid of the glowing Goku.

"He somehow turned into a Super Saiyan…! I thought it was just a tale parents tell their children… there is only one Super Saiyan per every 1000 years, or so it was said. I never thought they were real…!" Raditz, too, was a little freaked out by the latest events. To think that the little brother he thought was weaker than him somehow possessed this incredible power… it was unreal. "Calm down, pea brain! This is getting us nowhere!" he yelled again and suddenly found the brunt of his brother's anger directed at him. He found himself being hammered through a wall before he could hold up his hands in a placating, calming manner. The outer wall stopped his flight path around the small planet.

He could only groan weakly and felt like a battering ram had smashed into him repeatedly. Not even close to death had he felt this wrung out and in pain. "Damn…" he breathed and tried to regain his footing. Leaving their trainer and the two pets alone with that anger monster wasn't a good idea. His arms wouldn't take the weight he needed them to in order to hoist himself into a half standing position and his legs were clearly made out of rubber. He groaned again and tried standing up again. "That idiot." He rasped and staggered through the door after opening it.

Inside the house he found King Kai trying to calm down the enraged Super Saiyan and the animals were shivering in a corner. Kakarot was glowing and putting out a ton of power.

"Kakarot." His voice sounded strained and pain-filled. "Please. Calm down. Once we're back to life and bring Vegeta and Nappa to our side you can go after Frieza and avenge them. You're scaring everyone but the responsible party right now." He tried getting air into his lungs, but that proved to be quite hard.

Goku whirled around and stared at him through his golden aura with those scary, teal eyes and growled. Raditz realised that the Super Saiyan had no outlet for his anger and frustration and started to actually feel scared of his little brother.

"Come on. No one here was responsible. Save that anger for Frieza… we can work on your transformation and then you can take him down and avenge everyone." His brother groaned and growled before forcing the energy down again. His hair remained golden-blond and his eyes were still teal but he didn't seem to be about to want to explode them all. "Great." Raditz said and collapsed. "You hit like a bloody sledgehammer like this."

"What happened?" Goku growled out. "I've never been so angry before… and then it suddenly felt like a rubber band gave way inside of me… now I feel so light and strong…!" he looked around as if ready for battle.

"You transformed into a Super Saiyan." Raditz sat on the ground and tried to breathe normally. He knew his ribs were most likely broken from that one blow that sent him around the small planet. "I thought it was just a tale for children… but apparently it's real and you just have to be angry and strong enough to transform… damn, little brother, you did quite the number on me."

"Sorry?" Goku said and scratched his head. When he felt his hair not stand up in its usual manner, he pulled down a strand and stared intently at it. "What the heck?" he pulled more strands down. "Chichi is going to kill me again the moment she sees this." He too sat down. King Kai, Bubbles and Gregory were still cowering by a wall.

"That's all you're worried about? Damn it, Kakarot!" Raditz finally had enough and laid down on the ground. "This is fucking unbelievable! A Super Saiyan… and then you're worried what your wife will say about your hair? You literally are a living legend, you idiot!" Raditz covered his face with his hands while still muttering.

"She likes my black hair! And she'll think I dyed it and that I'm a punk now!" Goku all but wailed.

"Then control your energy until it turns back! I can't believe we're related!" Raditz screamed at his brother. "How can you sometimes be such an idiot?"

"I don't know!" Goku screamed back while trying – unsuccessfully – to supress his Ki. He kept holding a strand of his hair down and stared at it with crossed eyes. "This isn't working!" he was getting angry over the single most stupid things at the moment. He had never been this emotional before. "I'm still blond!"

"Well, control yourself better then!" Raditz struggled to sit back up just so he could glare at his childish, stupid little brother. He couldn't manage to get back up and started cursing up a storm. "All this is your fault! Why the heck did you smack me through the bloody wall and around the fucking planet? You have zero self-control!"

"Stop shouting!" Goku hollered. "It's making me mad and that makes me want to do it _again_!" he went back to clutching his hair and being angry at it.

King Kai, Bubbles and Gregory couldn't believe what just happened.

"Goku. While you're arguing with your hair, maybe you could try to think about a way your friends could get their hands on some evidence against Frieza." King Kai finally said.

Goku didn't even look at him and just said "Ask Bulma. She's smart and can do anything. If they have files on a computer she can get them from across the universe. I'm sure." He didn't even bother to think about a way to contact his friend – King Kai would know what to do. The blue man nodded, concentrated and contacted Goku's friend.

Bulma was badly startled when King Kai contacted her. He told her that it would be enough to think what she wanted to say and then told her what Raditz had told him and Goku – and how Goku had reacted. He asked her to get the information about the genocide of the Saiyan race and then just shut off the connection – he still had to deal with an injured and bad tempered Saiyan and a grouchy Super Saiyan that just hated his new hair colour.

xxx

_Thank you to everyone who commented :) _

_My vacation was great - and as promised here is the new chapter. _

_If you liked it, I'd appreciate a comment._

_If you didn't like it: tell me why in an understandable fashion or just stop reading. If you're locked in while commenting I might even be able to answer you :)_

_Until next week!_


	5. Chapter 5

Bulma couldn't believe what that King Kai person had asked her to do. How in the world would she ever manage to connect with a server on a planet that was light years away and probably had an encryption far more advanced than anything she had ever seen or heard off on Planet Earth?

She was freaking out over the task which might be the only way to keep the advancing Saiyans from killing them all. Then she thought about her sister… who was employed by the Space Patrol and who was travelling all over the universe as it was. She hadn't talked to Tights in quite a while… but maybe her sister would have an idea on how to get into Frieza's computer…

It was worth a try, she decided.

Bulma had a device in her laboratory, a small thing, no more than a button. Tights had given it to her when she had accepted her position with the Space Patrol. When she pressed a holo screen opened up and a little later Tights' face appeared.

"Hey sis!" the blond woman said cheerfully. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your call? It's been ages since one of you called me!" Tights smiled slightly and Bulma suppressed a wince.

"I know. We're all horrible about keeping in touch… I'm sorry." Bulma set the holo device on her table and sat down heavily. She sighed. "Things aren't good here, Tights. And we could use your help." She blinked and suddenly felt the tension she had felt over the last months come to a staggering peak. Before she knew what was happening tears were building up in her eyes.

Tights looked around the room then moved to a more secluded spot than she had been in when she got the call. She closed the door to the kitchen area of the apartment she was sharing with several Space Patrol officers and sat down at the table. "What's going on, sis?" she asked and then saw the tears in her sister's bright blue eyes overflow.

"We're about to be invaded." Bulma told her and Tights clenched her fists. "It's bad – Tights, Goku is dead. He's training in the afterlife, if you can believe it, and we'll wish him back in a few months… but he died! And the guy to do it was his brother and the weakest of the group that is coming to end us all." Bulma shook her head and Tights decided not to pick up on the 'brother' thing. So Goku was an alien? She wasn't that surprised.

"How can I help? I'm not exactly strong, you know…" she frowned. What could she do, really? The Space Patrol held some sway and kept the peace between all races. They were highly respected, but acted more like ambassadors. Their weapons were very advanced, but against some beings they would all just loose.

"Goku's brother came around and to his senses after they were dead. Goku is a Saiyan, whatever that really means." Tights sucked in air. That race had been full of very strong warriors and they were known across the universe to have been utterly merciless. To think that a sweet guy like Goku was one of them… Bulma continued then and Tights listened closely. "He said that we can stop the other two Saiyans from attacking by getting proof that Frieza was the one to destroy their home world. He thinks they can all band together and defeat that guy."

"Frieza?" Tights yelled. "Please tell me you don't have any dealings with the Planet Trade Organisation!" Tights had never been so scared for her sister and her parents before. Frieza and his family and their soldiers were bad news. They were accepted mainly because no one was strong enough to deal with them.

"We need proof for the Saiyans. Raditz, that is Goku's brother, said that they keep files about the destruction of Planet Vegeta… and that the other two Saiyans could be convinced to side with us if we get those files…" Bulma frowned when she saw how worried Tights seemed suddenly. "This is far worse than I thought, isn't it?"

"Yes. Far, far worse. I'll see what I can do to get those files. Do you have further information about them?"

"Raditz looked for reports from his father, Bardock. That guy's team was taken out first and some guy called Dodoria wrote every word that was said into his report of the assassination of the team. Frieza ordered the attack and then went on to destroy Planet Vegeta. Someone called Zarbon wrote details of that attack into his report."

Tights cursed. "I can't believe this. This is the absolute worst thing to happen… they are so dangerous and deranged…" she swallowed. "I'll see what I can do. How much time do I have?"

Bulma looked around and checked her calendar. "Five months." She looked at her sister, who looked shocked. She had never seen Tights like this before and it scared her more than the prospect of two more Saiyans coming to conquer Earth.

Tights nodded. "I'll call you when I have something." She hung up and Bulma gathered herself before going back to tinkering with her newest invention. She tried not to think to hard about how uncertain the future looked at the moment.

Xxx

Gohan ducked under Piccolo's kick and spun around quickly to try and punch his teacher in the kidney. Piccolo invaded and Gohan, as he had learned the hard way, kept moving while trying to find Piccolo's energy source.

The moment his found the man he dropped hard to the ground and rolled to evade first the kick and then the follow-up stomp. Piccolo wasn't an easy task master and took training Gohan very seriously. He tried making sure that the boy wouldn't freeze up on them and as such didn't pull any punches or kicks. The boy knew he meant business and that to stop for even a moment during their spars would cause him pain. He had raided Korin's stores of Senzu Beans mainly so he wouldn't need to worry about long recovery periods for his charge.

Gohan, who at most had had a scraped knee before, had never experienced a broken bone before then or had had a wound bleed badly. This training with Piccolo was slowly but surely taking away his fear of being hit and injured.

And by now he almost managed to give back what he got injury wise. Unbeknownst to either Gohan or Piccolo the young boy had inherited the ability to greatly increase his strength with each bad injury from his Saiyan ancestors. The more Piccolo pushed the child and the harder he was on him, the faster he improved. Neither realised as of yet, that Gohan was nearly as strong as his mentor by now.

He had left behind the little cry-baby he had been and had discovered that he, like his father, enjoyed the thrill of the fight.

Piccolo showed the boy almost all his attacks. He didn't see Gohan as a means to an end anymore and wasn't using him to in the end hurt Goku. Nor did he even consider turning on them the moment the threat of the Saiyans was gone anymore. He had decided to just keep training his new apprentice – never before had he had such a good time.

Sure, it was bloody and brutal and he kept harming his charge to get a point or two across, but Gohan didn't complain and kept improving rapidly.

"Alright, stop." He told Gohan and dropped out of his stance. Gohan skidded to a halt and looked at him. "Enough for now. Go get something to eat, brat." He turned around and proceeded to ignore the little boy.

Gohan blinked once before reorienting himself and then set off into the heavily forested part of their island. Maybe he could find a dinosaur… they had juicy meat. And a few fruits would be really nice for once as well. He had noticed how much faster he was starting to get. He also remembered how fast Raditz had been. The four years old – almost five, if he had kept track of the days correctly – knew his power was severely lacking for what was to come. He couldn't change that now, though, so he quickly tracked down some pray.

Lately Piccolo would simply come and pick him up if he took too long and it never mattered if he had eaten or not. Once their break was over the truly gruelling part of their training would begin.

After their break Piccolo would usually stop holding back. That was when he usually ended up being hurt and unconscious…

Lately he had been able to keep up better though. And Gohan was more than willing to keep going. He would help keep everyone safe. No one would die this time, not like his father had. He could not get the image of his father being tortured by his _uncle,_ of all people, out of his head. He would protect everyone.

By now he had reached the deep forest. He had seen a tree around here with some apples on it. Quick as lightening he was up in the branches and grabbed two of the delicious fruits. Then he was moving again. First Gohan dropped down to the ground and then ran through the undergrowth as fast as he could. He took deep breaths as he ran. Another bonus of his heritage was the greatly improved sense of smell. He knew an animal had come through here not long ago so he followed the trail.

Not even three minutes later he jumped the small deer that had been in front of him. It hadn't sensed him or suspected anything or anyone following it – and Gohan ended its life quickly and painlessly.

Within minutes he had the animal skinned and had the intestines removed. He started a fire on the spot – he knew he wouldn't have the time to eat at their camp. The deer would take quite a while to cook whole, so he knew dragging it back to their camp would be a useless endeavour. While the meat was slowly roasting Gohan made several quick trips through the area and found some wild onions and spices he knew from his mother's kitchen. He knew they'd go well with his roast.

Since the deer wasn't very big it didn't take that long to cook – and even less time with the use of his Ki to speed things up. Gohan knew Piccolo very well after spending months with the man. So he wasn't surprised when his teacher suddenly appeared in the clearing just after the boy had finished his meal.

No words were spoken and Piccolo attacked.

While rolling and dodging wildly Gohan wondered how his father and mother were doing. He barely dodged the brutal kick Piccolo send his way and nearly ran into a tree – it was time to stop with his daydreams and focus.

Several long, painful hours later Piccolo dropped the young boy unceremoniously to the ground in their base camp. He felt like he had gotten quite the workout today. And since the boy wasn't too badly hurt he didn't feel the need to feed him one of the Senzu beans he had liberated from Korin. He'd start their training half an hour later than usual to make up for the lack of healing and take it from there. Maybe he'd teach the boy some theoretical strategies and some team formations.

The moment Piccolo thought about team formations he sighed. Those would be useful against their opposition. He realised that they would be useful not just for the five year old and him, but for the rest of the fighters training with Kami as well. He was loathing cooperating with his other half under the worst of circumstances, though. They had a mere four months left to train before those comrades of Raditz, whom Goku and he had barely managed to beat, arrived. Raditz had told them with his dying breath that the two that were coming were much, much stronger than him. Maybe it was time for him to cooperate with Kami and to teach Goku's friends some effective combo attacks. It wouldn't do for them to all die because neither of them knew how to work together.

Piccolo usually trained by dividing himself into four bodies. The other three would team up and the training would be most effective. So it stood to reason that they were stronger united against a seemingly unbeatable foe. He and Goku had managed to beat Raditz as well when they had worked together… Piccolo sighed deeply.

In the morning he'd tell the boy to pack up anything he wanted to keep and then they'd hit the Lookout and whip those so called fighters into shape.

XXX

_Thank you all for the nice comments :) _

_This chapter is a) a day late - I was doing some advanced training quite a way away and only returned late in the evening... so... today is the day. Next Thusday will be a regular update again.- and b) quite short. Next week's chapter will be way longer. So... I hope this will tide you over. :) _

_I hope you enjoy this chapter! As always, read and review - I'll try to answer if I can find some time._


	6. Chapter 6

Chichi was not supposed to sympathise with the Saiyans. They were by all accounts a ruthless race of warriors who couldn't care less about anything living unless they meant to wipe it out.

Yet here she was, in the home of her parents in law, sympathising with the Saiyans. They had been bred as nothing but slaves for the race that had originally lived on the planet – the Tuffles. The Tuffles had needed guards, field workers and other manual labourers while they leaned back and enjoyed life. They were technologically advanced and used their weapons to keep their slaves in check.

As long as the Tuffles didn't mess with the Saiyan's children, things might have gone on like they were. But then some politician decided that it would create a more effective workforce if the young Saiyan's were removed from their parents and reared like mindless little drones.

With the next full moon a group of revolutionaries broke out of their windowless sleeping quarters and transformed into Oozaro form. They broke out the others and together they broke their chains and defeated their masters.

Chichi would have done the same – she basically was doing the same by being here and training with Bardock and his team. She would find and protect Gohan, no matter the cost.

Chichi thought that things between the Saiyans and Frieza might have gone better, if that idiot hadn't done the same the Tuffles had. Now that white-purple freak was demanding that the King hand over his oldest son, Vegeta, so the boy could be trained under him.

In Chichi's timeline the King had eventually given in – this time though he wasn't delivering Frieza's new "pet monkey" on a silver platter. Additionally no infants were sent off planet anymore, to the obvious joy of the new parents. Aggression levels among the race were at an all-time low after the decision of their ruler was made public.

After Frieza's demand the King also decided to take far fewer missions – presumably to show his displeasure. The reason only the King and his Queen were privy too was that they were trying to slowly sever all ties with Frieza.

Chichi had improved in leaps and bounds. She could move as effortless and graceful as any Saiyan now and her strength could not be compared to what it had been months ago. She noted the passage of time by the quickly progressing pregnancy of her mother in law.

Gine had taken her along for an ultrasound and Chichi could only grin when she thought about eventually seeing her husband as a cute little baby. She didn't think that she even could return to the Pendulum Room without having seen Goku born and well.

Another experience she could have done without had been the time she spent in the Regeneration Tanks. Every time someone smacked her around to roughly she would be taken to the medics who were so advanced that they didn't need to do anymore than place her body – naked, if there was enough time – into a tube made of glass and fill it with a greenish liquid. Her vitals were the only thing they paid any mind – should it be necessary the intensity of the healing could be increased or decreased. This depended solely on how the body took to the healing.

Grievous wounds were usually healed at a greater intensity, but this took its toll and most of the time the person in the tank would loose weight. Non life threatening wounds would be healed at a slightly increased rate, which didn't take much out of the person's body, but also reduced the problem of infection or complications to basically zero.

Chichi was sure that Bulma would literally kill to get those prints into her hands.

"Who is this Bulma person?" Bardock asked her when she told them about her conviction.

"Bulma? She's Goku's oldest friend. He spent some years living alone after his grandfather died, and she was the first person to find him. She also dragged him out of the area he lived in – we still live there on Mount Paozu – and took him on his first adventure. She's the reason we met, now that I think about it…" Chichi explained.

"And why would she kill for the blueprints of a Healing Tank?" Bardock asked and his slightly confused face made him look even more like Goku. Chichi had to blink to get the overlapping image out of her head.

"She loves anything technological. She is probably the smartest person on Planet Earth… she was 15 when she was finished her education with the highest degree our planet has to offer – normally someone is about ten years older than Bulma was.

"She created a radar to help find…" she stocked, then sighed and explained further. "We have some mystical orbs on our planet which, when all gathered together, can grant one wish – anything literally. Like bringing someone back to life, or infinite wealth and luck. Anything. They apparently emit a frequency special to just them and Bulma created a device to help find them. She could built anything at that age and her knowledge has only increased.

"Bulma would probably look at the prints, find something she could do to make the device better and then mass produce them and have them delivered to every hospital worldwide within a month." Chichi shrugged. "Bulma is incredibly smart…"

Bardock and Gine stared at her.

"I'll get you the prints." Bardock finally said and shook his head. "I wonder what she'd do with one of our spaceships…"

"Make it bigger and faster, I'd guess." Chichi said with a half smile and a slightly helpless shrug.

"You probably want a blueprint of those as well then…" Fasha shook her head and went to raid the fridge.

"I wouldn't say no…" Chichi grinned and watched as Gine stared at Fasha. Ever since her pregnancy had progressed this far – she looked ready to burst – she was far more aggressive and not nearly as understanding as before.

"Why are you raiding my fridge, Fasha? Don't you have a home?" Fasha stared at Gine with wide eyes and the silently put the stick of celery back to where she had found it. "Thank you." Gine said and went back to chopping meat into small pieces.

"I'm hungry…" Fasha grouched and slid into a seat next to Chichi.

Chichi looked at her from where she was cutting vegetables. "You know it would go faster if you were to help with the preparations…"

Fasha wrinkled her nose. She was great at eating, but cooking made her muscles cramp up and her stomach do weird little flips. "No… please don't make me!" she wailed. "I won't touch anything anymore… I'll be patient, I swear!"

Chichi rolled her eyes and Raditz laughed at is auntie's antics.

"So… those orbs can bring back the dead." Bardock finally asked after progressing everything Chichi had said earlier.

"Yes. Just like they were before they had died – as long as the death wasn't natural." Chichi explained.

"So… your husband…" Bardock gestured a little helplessly but Chichi got the meaning. They hadn't told Raditz the story, just the absolutely necessary parts.

"Yes." Chichi nodded. "When the year is almost up we'll gather the Dragon Balls and he'll be back."

Bardock nodded. "What about the brother?" Gine suddenly asked in a strained voice. She didn't turn around to look at Chichi.

"That's for Kami to decide." Chichi finally ventured. After spending time with little Raditz, who was like her Gohan in a way and loved to climb on the adults laps and cuddling and was always up for a game, Chichi felt only sadness when she thought about the adult Raditz had become in her time. She couldn't imagine the little boy who loved playing with her as the man who had caused Goku to die.

Gine nodded and dropped the subject. "My back and my feet are killing me." She suddenly said and plopped down next to Bardock. "I don't think I can cook." She sighed and leaned into her mate. Raditz took the chance and climbed onto her lap for a quick cuddle with 'his brother' – which as of yet meant Gine's baby bump.

"That's fine. Fasha and I can finish, right?" Chichi cheerfully looked at the horrified female who looked ready to run away.

"No." Fasha gritted out. "I'd rather pay for take-out!" she got up and took several quick steps away from the kitchen.

Everyone laughed at her and Tora got up to finish cutting the meat into little pieces. They had been meant to go on a mission – apparently Frieza himself had requested the team. They had turned it down on the grounds of Gine being near her due date and their captain refused to leave her.

Before the King had refused sending his son to Frieza and cancelling the children's program completely they would have had to go. But along with the change to having their children taken and send to planets to conquer them for the Icejin the King had told his people that they weren't forced to accept any mission thrown their way anymore.

Bardock had taken the opportunity to basically refuse any mission since Chichi's arrival. At first she was the reason – they needed to train a new team member – and then Gine was 'sick' and they had to take care of her and be there for her… and now she was almost ready to give birth.

No, they hadn't left the planet since Chichi had entered their lives. And neither did they plan to take any more missions off planet. Borgos had gone and done some research and seen that the King had decided to slowly retract their services from the Planet Trade Organisation – now Bardock' team was convinced that Frieza would destroy their planet… and Chichi was somehow sure that this sudden change had been caused by her.

She knew that in her time Saiyan infants had still been send to other planets – Goku was her proof. She told this to her new friends and the mood had turned even grimmer.

"The Queen is a seer." Gine had supplied and Chichi had paled. "They haven't come for you, so I guess they're thankful for the timely warning, even if you didn't say anything directly." She had shrugged and they had dropped the subject.

Chichi could hold her own against Shugesh now, who somehow was the weakest member of the team. Borgos told her that she was doing great and helped her with the development and learning of several techniques. He was the one doing the most research before the team was deployed on their missions and who helped everyone prepare for what to expect once they landed on their designated planet. Fasha was their medic off planet, so to speak – she always ended up patching her boys up before the left for home again. Shugesh and Tora could both fill several roles at once and Tora also took care of logistics before travelling. Bardock was the lime that kept them together – he also could repair anything on their spaceships without breaking a sweat. And Gine and little Raditz were somehow and inexplicably their family as well – just as Bardock and Gine's house was their home also.

They had their own places but neither spent much time there. They all were so close-knit that family-bonds had formed between them.

"I can't believe that we only have a few weeks left now…" Shugesh suddenly said and laid his head on the table.

"For what, uncle?" Raditz looked up from where he had laid it on his mother's stomach.

"To… to train with Chichi." Shugesh answered with a slightly panicked expression. "She has to go home soon, remember?" he then asked the little boy and raised his eyebrows.

"Why?" Raditz asked and then yawned deeply.

"To safe my family, Raditz – I came here to train to defeat someone who will attack us soon. We were lucky that we heard about this before they arrived." Chichi patted the child's head as she walked by with the cut vegetables to stir in with the cooking meat.

"Can't you stay?" he asked with huge eyes.

"No, Raditz… Chichi has to go back to her little boy." Gine told him und hugged him closer. "Maybe you'll meet again some day."

"We could visit!" he said full of excitement and smiled at Chichi.

"Yes." She said and smiled back. "That would be really nice."

After they all ate – Gine with barely any appetite – Shugesh and Borgos did the dishes. After every meal someone else would have to clear the table and wash up. Gine slowly walked across the room and heavily sat down on the couch.

"I can't wait to be _done_ being pregnant. Everything hurts all the time now." She sighed and then winced. And now he goes kicking me in the liver – that's absolutely your brat!" she slapped Bardock's arm and carefully pressed her hand against her bump to get the baby to shift positions again.

"Mine?" Bardock asked. "Yours. You kick like a mule when you look for cold spots in the bed." He poked her in the same area she was touching and the bump shifted slightly. He grinned and Gine relaxed a little.

"You suck." She told him petulantly before leaning into him again. Raditz had climbed up Tora and had gone to sleep right after dinner and they were all quiet.

"I wish we really had more time, though." Gine finally said and they all agreed.

Three weeks later Gine went into labour. Having Bardock there to lend her some Ki after hours and hours of labour helped her greatly. The whole team and a grouchy little Raditz who wanted his parents and had to stay out of the delivery room were waiting for news at the couple's home. Their nerves were wrecked and Raditz was throwing one childish tantrum after the next.

His soup was too wet. His bread was too dry. When Chichi told him to dip the bread into the soup made him refuse to eat anything anymore.

Fasha tried feeding him some dessert as a last resort to get the mulish, pouting boy to eat. That turned out to be too cold and too sweet. He refused to try even a spoon full of it.

"You loved it yesterday!" Fasha finally lost her cool and Raditz started to wail like a banshee. He ran to Chichi, who then had to carry the boy around for hours.

After a few more hours Tora's scouter pinged and he picked it up from the coffee table. "Bardock messaged. He's there and both Gine and the kid are perfectly fine." He told them and grinned. "We can go and visit them now if we want." They all cheered and packed up to fly over to the medical centre.

Raditz suddenly was full of life and smiles again. He was a big brother now!

When they all entered the room Gine was already packing up her things and waving Bardock, who was sitting on the bed with the new-born in his arms, away. "I'm fine!" she said to him. "I don't need to spend another night here! And neither does Kakarot."

"Hey you guys!" Shugesh boomed and shoved the others out of the way. He marched over to the bed and glanced at the sleeping infant in Bardock's arms. "Looks just like you!" he grinned wildly and poked Kakarot's little cheek to which the baby made a snorting sound and a little jerk.

"Don't go poking him now!" Bardock snapped at him and made to move the baby away. "We finally got him quiet!"

Shugesh was having none of that. He grabbed the little Saiyan out of his father's arms and quickly went to show him to their friends. "Look! Bardock cloned himself!" he laughed loudly and little Kakarot scrunched up his face.

Chichi looked at the baby that would grow up to be her husband and Gohan's father and smiled through tears. "You're so adorable!" she told the baby whose tail had begun to flick back and forth. "I'll never let grown-up you live this moment down!" she grinned and took Kakarot from Shugesh.

"Aw – don't take him!" the big man said and frowned at her.

"Like you didn't steal him from his father?" Fasha slapped his arm and he shrugged.

They looked at Bardock, who had lain down on Gine's bed and had closed his eyes. "He doesn't mind that much!" Borgos crowed and gently touched the baby's tail. "He's still all soft." He smiled.

Tora was holding Raditz up who was starting to demand to see his brother. "There he is." He told the squirming boy and held him closer to Chichi. "That's Kakarot." Raditz touched his brother's hair and hung as close to him as he could.

"Why's he so tiny?" he suddenly asked and frowned cutely. "How are we gonna play like this?"

"Ah, Raditz…" Chichi laughed. "You'll have to wait a little for him to grow. Before that he's too small to play." She looked around and saw a comfy looking armchair in a corner. "Do you want to hold you brother?"

Raditz looked at her and nodded quickly. "Yeah!" he grinned wildly.

"Go sit in that chair and I'll show you how to hold him." He was sitting down before she was quite finished. She laughed and laid his little brother into the excited boy's waiting arms. "You'll have to support his head – new babies are still quite weak and need a lot of help. There you go." She patted his head and watched him as he inspected his brother's little face, his fingers, the tail that was wrapping itself around Raditz' arm and the tiny feet poking out of the soft blanket.

"That's so cute!" Gine said and smiled.

"I got a ton of pictures!" Borgos suddenly announced. For now they were all happy.

An hour later they left the medical centre for home. When they got there Kakarot woke from his nap and very loudly demanded to be changed and fed. Raditz clamped his hands over his ears and shouted "He's so loud!" and a little later, while the baby was nursing himself into a food coma, he added "if he keeps being that noisy he's not allowed to sleep in my room." They all laughed at that.

Chichi was being far more quiet than normal and they all knew she was about to go back home.

"I've got something for you, Chichi." Borgos suddenly said and got up. When he returned he handed her several pictures that had been printed out and a data stick. "I keep taking pictures, as you know, and we all knew you'd not stay much longer than little Kakarot's birth, so I wanted to give you something to remember us by… I've put the newest ones on the stick, they're still printing, though."

The pictures held Chichi with Team Bardock. They were training, laughing, Chichi and Gine were cooking, she was playing with Raditz – and when he came back once more there were pictures of Bardock holding the new-born Kakarot, the scene of Shugesh stealing the child, Chichi holding him with her face full of adoration and her handing the baby over to an eager Raditz.

Chichi felt like crying again. "I'll never forget you and I hope we'll see each other again." She hoped they'd all live. "And if things look grim, you know where to go. Don't wait too long then, okay?" she looked at their suddenly grim faces. "Promise me." She demanded until they all had nodded and agreed.

She hugged each of them in turn and kissed each little boy on the forehead before wishing herself back into the Pendulum Room. When they started to blur she let the tears fall.

I'm sorry for taking so much longer to update nowadays. Things have gotten absolutely crazy and insane at work (a new law is making my local government's life hell) and I didn't have room to even breathe. I won't abandon this story, don't worry - and I've even planned out how it will end by now. Updates will be a tad slower, though. I'm tending to an update every two weeks and hope I'll be able to keep ahead in my writing.

I hope you'll enjoy the chapter... and as always: please leave a review :)


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